Dictatorship

A dictatorship is a government headed by a dictator. Originally a legitimate military office in the Roman Republic, the dictator was given his powers by the Senate. The dictator had absolute power, but for a limited time.

In the twentieth century, the term dictatorship has come to mean a government in which absolute power is concentrated in the hands of a dictator and sometimes his cronies. Dictators are still often elected to the highest governmental office (Hitler) was Reichskanzler, or Reich Chancellor, (Stalin) was Premier of the Soviet Union, and many Latin American dictators have held the title of President), but wield extraordinary, often non-constitutional powers. Still other modern dictators seize power in a military coup d'état, and are supported by the military.